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Books > Music > Composers & musicians
In his introduction Mr. Foss gives us a short sketch of Delius; contributions by Rogber Quilter, Charles Kennedy and Percy Scott.
'Bowie, Cambo & All the Hype' traces the extraordinary and pivotal friendship between David Bowie and drummer John Cambridge, from the time when Bowie made his first major career breakthrough in 1969 to his death from cancer in 2016. John 'Cambo' Cambridge lived with Bowie at Haddon Hall when he had his first hit record 'Space Oddity' and toured with him in Junior's Eyes. He was there when Bowie lost his father, passed his driving test and played his first Glam Rock gig with Hype, even acting as best man when Bowie married Angela Barnett in 1970. And if John had not persuaded his former Rats colleague Mick Ronson to join Bowie in February 1970, there might never have been a Ziggy Stardust or the stellar career which followed. In this book we get a backstage pass to meet the key people and witness the events of those crucial times in a funny, moving, story of a unique friendship that survived the Hype.
The guitarist and composer Pat Metheny ranks among the most popular and innovative jazz musicians of all time. In Pat Metheny: The ECM Years, 1975-1984, Mervyn Cooke offers the first in-depth account of Metheny's early creative period, during which he recorded eleven stunningly varied albums for the pioneering European record label ECM (Edition of Contemporary Music). This impressive body of recordings encompasses both straight-ahead jazz playing with virtuosic small ensembles and the increasingly complex textures and structures of the Pat Metheny Group, a hugely successful band also notable for its creative exploration of advanced music technologies which were state-of-the-art at the time. Metheny's music in all its shapes and forms broke major new ground in its refusal to subscribe to either of the stylistic poles of bebop and jazz-rock fusion which prevailed in the late 1970s. Through a series of detailed analyses based on a substantial body of new transcriptions from the recordings, this study reveals the close interrelationship of improvisation and pre-composition which lies at the very heart of the music. Furthermore, these analyses vividly demonstrate how Metheny's music is often conditioned by a strongly linear narrative model: both its story-telling characteristics and atmospheric suggestiveness have sometimes been compared to those of film music, a genre in which the guitarist also became active during this early period. The melodic memorability for which Metheny's compositions and improvisations have long been world-renowned is shown to be just one important element in an unusually rich and flexible musical language that embraces influences as diverse as bebop, free jazz, rock, pop, country & western, Brazilian music, classical music, minimalism, and the avant-garde. These elements are melded into a uniquely distinctive soundworld which, above all, directly reflects Metheny's passionate belief in the need to refashion jazz in ways which can allow it to speak powerfully to each new generation of youthful listeners.
This volume in the Greenwood Press series, Bio-Bibliographies in Music, provides new details about the life and works of Polish composer Witold Lutoslawski. It includes a detailed catalogue of the composer's works and performances, including his film music, incidental music for the theatre, music for radio plays, and songs he composed under a pseudonym, as well as a bibliography, discography, and brief biographical sketch. His unique style was distinguished by an individual harmonic system controlled aleatory technique that he developed more fully during the 1960s and 1970s. The discography includes over 300 recordings and the bibliography includes writings the composer and a separate section for the writings about him, including concert and recording reviews, books, articles, dissertations, and interviews. This research tool will appeal to Lutoslawski fans and to musicologists. Each section is cross-referenced throughout. An appendix provides an alphabetical list of all of the composer's works.
The enchanting story of the real life Hannah Montana and her stunning success as a film, television, and music superstar. This biography tells the story of the real-life Hannah Montana, the daughter of country music superstar Billy Ray Cyrus, who has become an international phenomenon in her own right. Miley Cyrus details the star's life from her Franklin, Tennessee, childhood to snagging the role of Hannah Montana from over 1,000 other hopefuls. The book also follows Cyrus' transition from a wholesome Disney icon to a more mature actress and musician, covering both her efforts to be a positive teen influence, and controversies such as Cyrus' photo shoot for Vanity Fair with her father. As an added bonus, the book offers a complete Hannah Montana episode guide as well as a complete discography of Cyrus' recordings as both Hannah and Miley.
Roger Daltrey is the voice of a generation. That generation was the first to rebel, to step out of the shadows of the Second World War... to invent the concept of the teenager. This is the story from his birth at the height of the Blitz, through tempestuous school days to his expulsion, age 15, for various crimes and misdemeanours within a strict school system. Thanks to Mr Kibblewhite, his authoritarian headmaster, it could all have ended there. The life of a factory worker beckoned. But then came rock and roll. He made his first guitar from factory off-cuts. He formed a band. The band became The Who - Maximum R&B - and, by luck and by sheer bloody-mindedness, Roger Daltrey became the frontman of one of the biggest rock bands on the planet. This is the story of My Generation, Tommy and Quadrophenia, of smashed guitars, exploding drums, cars in swimming pools, fights, arrests and redecorated hotel rooms. But it is also the story of how that post-war generation redefined the rules of youth. Out of that, the modern music industry was born - and it wasn't an easy birth. Money, drugs and youthful exuberance were a dangerous mix. This is as much a story of survival as it is of success. Four years in the making, this is the first time Roger Daltrey has told his story. It is not just his own hilarious and frank account of more than 50 wild years on the road. It is the definitive story of The Who and of the sweeping revolution that was British rock 'n' roll.
Falco and Beyond is devoted to the most popular Austrian song-writer, singer and rapper of the twentieth century and one of the most successful European singers of all time. Falco was born in 1957, reached the peak of his popularity in the 1980s with songs such as "Der Kommissar," "Rock Me Amadeus" and "Jeanny," with mixed luck attempted to revive his career in the 1990s and died in a car crash in 1998. He sold over 30 million records worldwide and remains a successful posthumous artist. The book attempts to identify the most salient and contradictory features of Falco's art, such as linguistic inventiveness and dexterity, rapping and adopting a posture of a romantic artist. It argues that Falco's songs betray an apocalyptic imagination, picturing the image of an exhausted and unhappy world. It looks at Falco's career and his phenomenon in the context of international and Austrian music business and politics, and investigates how his popularity has been maintained after his death, by means such as records released posthumously, cover versions of his songs, mashup songs and videos, biographies and Falco fandom.
FRANK SINATRA: AN EXTRAORDINARY LIFE is a compelling biography of Frank Sinatra's life and career - warts and all, spanning the years from 1915 to Sinatra's death in 1998. This fast-paced comprehensive chronicle details the superstar's music, films, romances, personality traits and questionable exploits! This book will be a wonderful addition to the library of any Frank Sinatra fan, or in fact, any fan of the big band era or of popular music in general. With unique material and exclusive interviews with fellow musicians, promoters, friends and those who knew him, this revised and updated biography is the definitive account of Frank Sinatra and his career. A new comprehensive discography, film listing, index, songs about Frank, tribute albums and more.
This volume presents the life and works of Robert Russell Bennett, whose prolific career as composer and arranger spanned much of the twentieth century. George J. Ferencz chronicles how Bennett's concert works, orchestrations, and commercial scores both reflected and enhanced the musical vitality of New York City, where he spent most of his professional life. Although Bennett enjoyed commercial success, his stylistic preferences embraced the classics, and Ferencz appropriately focuses his study on Bennett's original concert works rather than his popular scores. Ferencz introduces the artist with a lengthy biographical profile, followed by a complete list of works and selected performances which features compositions rather than arrangements in an effort to document those works most representative of Bennett's singular talent. All of Bennett's known commercial recordings are cataloged in the discography, and an annotated bibliography highlights writings about the composer and his works. Subsequent appendixes list commercial orchestrations and original scores for shows, film, and television, and a full index completes the work.
Few works in the nineteenth-century repertoire have aroused such extremes of hostility and admiration, or have generated so many scholarly problems, as Anton Bruckner's symphonies. In this 2004 book, Julian Horton seeks fresh ways of understanding the symphonies and the problems they have accrued by treating them as the focus for a variety of inter-disciplinary debates and methodological controversies. He isolates problematic areas in the works' analysis and reception, and approaches them from a range of analytical, historical, philosophical, literary, critical and psychoanalytical viewpoints. The symphonies are thus explored in the context of a number of crucial and sometimes provocative themes, including the political circumstances of the works' production, Bruckner and post-war musical analysis, issues of musical influence, the problem of editions, Bruckner and psychobiography, and the composer's controversial relationship to the Nazis.
In a recent poll (Harris 1996), the Statler Brothers, country and gospel music legends, were rated second only to Frank Sinatra as America's favorite singers. They are known as the most awarded act in the history of country music and are still going strong after 30 years. Their performances and the songs they write reflect where they were born--in the birthplace of gospel music, the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Presented here in a clear format are the expected discography details plus additional information that Statler fans will find fun to read. This work contains the usual session and release information, single and album chart histories, television programs, awards, and indices for song titles, composers, and musicians plus extras such as album notes and Statler proverbs. This is a well-researched, documented, and concise work suitable for scholars and fans alike.
'No musician or music lover should be without it.' BBC Music Magazine Robert Schumann was far ahead of his time: his music anticipated a multitude of trends that would spread in the 150 years after his death, and almost every major composer who followed him acknowledged his influence. He was also revolutionary in his attitude to young people; in 1848 he wrote his famous Advice to Young Musicians, a book that is still deeply relevant today. In this volume, celebrated cellist Steven Isserlis has taken Schumann's words of wisdom and set them in a modern context with his own extensive commentary. By turns practical, humorous and profound, this book is a must for aspiring musicians and music-lovers of all ages.
An important new reference source for students of western musical culture, this volume directs the user to all pertinent, substantive, and accessible information concerning the life and works of Sir Michael Tippett, widely recognized as one of this century's most significant composers. The book is divided into four main sections: a biography, an annotated list of works and performances, a discography, and an extensive bibliography. Five appendices provide additional information for the researcher including a chronological list of compositions, a classified list of published compositions, honors and awards won by the composer, ballet and television productions, and resources available. The brief biography which begins the volume provides a convenient source for basic factual information about Tippett's life. The works and performances section presents in one alphabetical sequence all known musical works by Tippett, including early unpublished compositions. Each citation includes information about year of composition, duration, genre, instrumentation, additional statements of responsibility, commissions and dedications, location of existing manuscripts, published editions, and a selected list of performances. The discography contains all known commercial recordings of Tippett's music along with information about performers, date and place of recording, and a chronological listing of all issues of the performance. Divided into three sections, the bibliography covers writings by Tippett, books and articles about Tippett, and reviews of his works culled from the Times (London), the New York Times, and a variety of major and local newspapers around the world. Taken as a whole, this is amasterful contribution to the reference works available on the great composers of the twentieth century.
While acknowledging that Pierre Boulez is not a philosopher, and that he is wary of the potential misuse of philosophy with regard to music, this study investigates a series of philosophically charged terms and concepts which he uses in discussion of his music. Campbell examines significant encounters which link Boulez to the work of a number of important philosophers and thinkers, including Adorno, Levi-Strauss, Eco and Deleuze. Relating Boulez's music and ideas to broader currents of thought, the book illuminates a number of affinities linking music and philosophy, and also literature and visual art. These connections facilitate enhanced understanding of post-war modernist music and Boulez's distinctive approach to composition. Drawing on a wide range of previously unpublished documentary sources and providing musical analysis of a number of key scores, the book traces the changing musical, philosophical and intellectual currents which inform Boulez's work."
Mordechai Gebirtig was one of the most influential and popular writers of Yiddish songs and poems. Born in 1877, he became a prolific poet and song writer, using everything he saw, heard and knew about people. His legacy, therefore, is not only one of melodies and lyrics, but also a treatise on Jewish life in Poland under the benign neglect of the Austrians, the ever growing hostility of the Poles, and finally, the terror of the Germans, who destroyed the people, their culture, and, to a great measure, their memory. Schneider's book for the first time brings his work to an English-speaking audience, offering a collection of all of his major works, complete with the scores, transliterated Yiddish text, and English translation. Her book offers a rare insight into the world of Eastern European Jews, their culture, and their music. Gebirtig's most famous song Es Brent--It's Burning--was written in response to a 1936 pogrom. It became a stirring hymn for the survivors of the Holocaust, who felt that the words suited their own situation very well. Gebirtig himself was shot in the Cracow Ghetto in June 1942. Neither he nor any of his close family survived the war. However, as this volume shows, his songs and poems remain an enduring voice for a Jewish community nearly lost to the Nazis. They constitute a precious legacy for anyone interested in the world of Eastern Europe Jews, their culture, and their music.
Internationally recognized American composer Elliott Cook Carter, Jr. has composed over three dozen substantial pieces, ranging from stage and choral works to ballets, symphonies, and chamber music. Even at age 85, he continues to pioneer trails into new territory in modern American music. Carter has been the recipient of two Guggenheim Fellowships, two Pulitzer Prizes for Music, and numerous other awards and honors. This book contains a listing of all compositions by Carter with detailed information on premiere performances, a complete discography, and annotated citations of Carter's writings and writings about Carter and his music.
The thirty-two Piano Sonatas of Ludwig van Beethoven form one of the most important segments of piano literature. In this accessible, compact, and comprehensive guidebook, renowned performer and pedagogue Stewart Gordon presents the pianist with historical insights and practical instructional tools for interpreting the pieces. In the opening chapters of Beethoven's 32 Piano Sonatas, Gordon illuminates the essential historical context behind common performance problems, discussing Beethoven's own pianos and how they relate to compositional style and demands in the pieces, and addressing textual issues, performance practices, and nuances of the composer's manuscript inscriptions. In outlining patterns of structure, sonority, keyboard technique, and emotional meaning evident across Beethoven's compositional development, Gordon provides important background and technical information key to understanding his works in context. Part II of the book presents each sonata in an outline-chart format, giving the student and teacher ready access to essential information, interpretive choices, and technical challenges in the individual works, measure by measure, all in one handy reference source. In consideration of the broad diversity of today's Beethoven interpreters, Gordon avoids one-size-fits-all solutions or giving undue weight to his own tastes and preferences. Instead, he puts the choices in the hands of the performers, enabling them to create their own personal relationship with the music and a more powerful performance.
William Howard Schuman, a celebrated figure in 20th-century music, was a composer and a copious writer on music and music education. Early on, as a composer, he received the attention of several musicians and writers such as Nathan Broder, Elliott Carter, and Leonard Bernstein. He was the recipient of numerous prestigious awards, including the Pulitzer Prize, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and the New York Music Critics Circle Award. After teaching at Sarah Lawrence College from 1935 to 1945 and serving as president of the Juilliard School from 1945 to 1962, Schuman assumed the presidency of Lincoln Center, where he successfully implemented that institution's artistic programs. Schuman, who composed in several genres, is perhaps best known for his orchestral compositions and choral music. This reference work provides a biography and a thorough catalog and guide to Schuman's writings and compositions and to the current research available on this gifted and multi-talented musician. An invaluable resource to music scholars interested in William Schuman's career, five sections provide accessible detailed information: a biography, works and performances, discography, bibliography, and bibliography of writings by Schuman. The biography traces Schuman's life and career with an emphasis on illustrating his compositional activity. The bibliography includes books, dissertations, articles, and reviews that chronicle Schuman's activities from his days as a young composer to his death in 1992. An author index, index of compositions, and general index complete this in-depth reference on William Schuman.
Written with grace, humor, and affection, Last Train to Memphis has been hailed as the definitive biography of Elvis Presley. It is the first to set aside the myths and focus on Elvis' humanity in a way that has yet to be duplicated. A New York Times Notable BookWinner of the Ralph J. Gleason Music Book Award "Elvis steps from the pages. You can feel him breathe. This book cancels out all others." --Bob Dylan From the moment that he first shook up the world in the mid 1950s, Elvis Presley has been one of the most vivid and enduring myths of American culture. Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley is the first biography to go past that myth and present an Elvis beyond the legend. Based on hundreds of interviews and nearly a decade of research, it traces the evolution not just of the man but of the music and of the culture he left utterly transformed, creating a completely fresh portrait of Elvis and his world. This volume tracks the first twenty-four years of Elvis' life, covering his childhood, the stunning first recordings at Sun Records ("That's All Right," "Mystery Train"), and the early RCA hits ("Heartbreak Hotel," "Hound Dog," "Don't Be Cruel"). These were the years of his improbable self-invention and unprecedented triumphs, when it seemed that everything that Elvis tried succeeded wildly. There was scarcely a cloud in sight through this period until, in 1958, he was drafted into the army and his mother died shortly thereafter. The book closes on that somber and poignant note. Last Train to Memphis takes us deep inside Elvis' life, exploring his lifelong passion for music of every sort (from blues and gospel to Bing Crosby and Mario Lanza), his compelling affection for his family, and his intimate relationships with girlfriends, mentors, band members, professional associates, and friends. It shows us the loneliness, the trustfulness, the voracious appetite for experience, and above all the unshakable, almost mystical faith that Elvis had in himself and his music. Drawing frequently on Elvis' own words and on the recollections of those closest to him, the book offers an emotional, complex portrait of young Elvis Presley with a depth and dimension that for the first time allow his extraordinary accomplishments to ring true. Peter Guralnick has given us a previously unseen world, a rich panoply of people and events that illuminate an achievement, a place, and a time as never revealed before. |
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